capturing the good life

Holiday

It is a shiny new year here at share a bit of love! I thought I would share a gift that I made for a gift exchange this year in case your new year’s resolution is to give a little more, make the world a greener place, or to spruce up your home or office.

I made this simple terrarium (two actually) for under $10 with some help from mother nature.

Here is what you will need:

Clear glass vessel

succulent plants

moss

potting soil

activated charcoal

gravel

rocks & sticks for added decoration

1. Start layering in this order: Gravel, charcoal, & potting soil.

2. Plant succulent in soil.

3. Pat in moss around to cover- You can skip this step, but it adds nice texture. I managed to peel some moss from our front yard. (thanks Pacific Northwest!)

4. Add stones/sticks (I used drift wood from a girls weekend at the beach a few months back, and stones collected from a camping trip)

There is endless nature to be discovered, scenery as far as the eye can see, and gifts only the cool damp weather can bring.

With the holidays in full swing, I thought I would gather a few pieces of my favorite place and put a wreath together. I chose to hop over to my favorite green belt and pick up the left overs from a recent wind storm. It was a win-win.

Here is what you will need:

Florist Wire

Wreath form (I used a maple branch)

Various Evergreen Boughs

Patience

Start by forming your wreath by bending the branch into a circle. Wire together tightly.

Grab about 4 boughs at a time, laying them on the wreath form, and tightly wrapping with wire to secure them. I used several pieces of wire instead of continuously wrapping. Continue around the entire wreath form adding different sets of boughs for different textures. Wrap a hanger to the main circle of the wreath. Tuck in a garnishments-holly, pine cones, or as I did, curly willow branches.

It is the season of gift giving. Around here we don’t do a lot of shopping, but instead, do a little supply gathering. Our family LOVES to do homemade gifts for the holidays. Today I took to some candle making supplies to test make some unique industrial candles. A quick trip to the hardware and craft stores and I was ready to go!

Here is what I used:

Galvanized Pipe Caps: 2 inch, 1 1/2 inch, and 1 1/14 inch sizes

Beeswax Pellets

Essential Oil (Sweet Orange)

Long wicks

In a double boiler, or in my case a regular pot of water with a heat safe bowl on top, heat the wax and about 40 drops of essential oil until fully melted. While you wait, glue the wicks to the bottom inside of your galvanized caps. Pull the wicks to one side, pour hot wax into each cap. Using skewers, prop your wicks up to keep them out of the wax. Don’t worry if the tops are a little rough, you can clean them up using a hair dryer and a skewer to smooth things out. When everything is set, cut your wicks down and viola! A custom set of candles ready for gifting. Total estimated Cost: $16.00

I had a birthday this week. A pretty significant one in fact. Another year passing is another year of adventures and memories. A group of my favorite people (including a surprise appearance of the natural ginger) joined in the celebration and we spent some time downtown. A night of food, drinks, laughter and salsa music made it a birthday well spent. With everyone coming in from everywhere, we seemed to find ourselves at Pike Place Market more than a few times. Is it the food? Or the atmosphere? My Secret answer? Mini Donuts from The Daily Dozen

This family is always lucky to have a sunny day, but it is ALWAYS cold for their photo session. This year we chose the Tacoma Glass Museum as a backdrop. Even with the freezing temperatures, we managed to have fun and capture another memory!

I adore the Ritter Family. They have been a large part of my life since kindergarten after meeting their oldest daughter and my best friend The Natural Ginger. They have a breathtaking piece of land nestled in the Cascades and a thriving business at Ritter Farms specializing in weddings and events.

When they get a chance to be in the same place at the same time, we’ve managed to capture a few photos. We had the opportunity when the extended family had a photo session, so we had to take full advantage of the opportunity to get some new family portraits.

I’ve known my favorite family with the big red barn for many, many years. Many of those years were without a photo of everyone at the same time in the same place.

When asked by Grandma Kathy to take photos of the many kids who have called the family property home, I was happy to get the camera out and capture a moment in time for her. It was a cold and very windy day- and everyone did their part to make it a fun and QUICK photo session. I see why there is so much of a Grandmother’s Pride & Joy in these photos as each grandchild brings laughter and happiness to her in their own way.